Cooking extrusion horn

ABSTRACT

A method and apparatus for an extrusion horn including an inner compression chamber having an interior channel extending from an open infeed port to an open exit port, where a top inner surface of the interior channel progressively tapers down with an initial slope having an initial downward taper to a target thickness, then top inner surface abruptly steps to an increased thickness of the channel, and then progressively tapers down with a secondary slope where the secondary slope has a steeper downward taper than the slope of the initial downward taper. An apparatus and method for extruding extrudate through an extruding horn conducive for producing bacon bits and jerky.

CROSS REFERENCE

This Application Is A Continuation-In-Part Of and Claims Priority ToU.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/532,038 Entitled COOKING EXTRUSIONHORN, filed Aug. 5, 2019, which is a Divisional Application of andClaims Priority to Ser. No. 15/042,689 Entitled COOKING EXTRUSION HORN,filed Feb. 12, 2016, and is now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 10,368,572, bothof which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND Field

This technology relates generally to stuffing horns, more particularly,to a stuffing horn configuration for cooking a product.

Background Art

A wide variety of products, such as food products, require processingbefore use by or sale to consumers. Generally, food products areprocessed in various stages, for example marinating, cutting, deboning,breading, adding spices, cooking, dicing, brazing, searing, freezing,and packaging, and combinations thereof. In particular, a knownprocessing system provides for the transportation of meat food products,such as chicken breasts or tenders, or any animal or plant based proteinitem from a marinating tumbler to an oven. The product can also be aground meat product or meat batter or other food extrudate that can beformed into a final product having a particular shape or form factorafter being extruded through a horn device and subsequently placed in abag that is vacuum sealed or other casing such as a collagen film or acoating material that may consist of a mixture or gel with acoagulatable protein. This type of food processing system can be acontinuous food processing system whereby an edible food strand of meator the like is extruded and is processed into a product or a desiredmeat cut. The exterior of the product is subject to contamination priorpackaging, therefore, cooking the food product during food processing iscommon.

Meat based food products are often deposited onto an oven belt or otherconveyor belt as it is being processed. The conveyor belt passes throughan oven to cook the meat food products. In such a system, a plurality ofconveyor belts can be used to transfer the meat food product from, forexample, a marinating tumbler through a press belt and onto the ovenbelt. A plurality of operators can also be employed to ensure that themeat food products are evenly distributed on the conveyor in order toavoid pile up, reduce floor loss and on oven belts in order to cook themeat food products uniformly and thoroughly.

The above food processing methods are generally known. These knownmethods are being used for the extrusion of sausage or sausage-likematerials or other protein based products. In principal this methodinvolves the extrusion, through an extrusion horn, of a product such asthat of a sausage mix. The food extrudate can be extruded when theextrudate is warm or cold. The stuffer horn can also act as a heatingelement as well as an extruder in a manner that is sufficient to atleast partially cook the food extrudate. However, the problem with manystuffer horn devices is that the horn design is not configured to allowfor uniform flow of food extrudate and the devices do not provideuniform size and cross section extrusion for the food extrudatethroughout the entire cooking process.

Existing equipment and processes have other shortcomings. Among theseshortcomings are extruders which are complex. Conveyors used for thestrand are open and invite unwanted lateral movement of the strandduring movement through the conveyer trough.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Compression Nozzle/Conduit Having an Inner Compression Chamber:

An implementation of the technology as disclosed and claimed herein andas illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8, is an extrusion horn including an innercompression chamber having an interior channel extending from an openinfeed port to an open exit port, where a top inner surface of theinterior channel progressively tapers down to a target thickness with aninitial slope having an initial downward taper, then the top innersurface of the interior channel abruptly steps to an increased thicknessof the channel, and then progressively tapers down with a secondaryslope where the secondary slope has a steeper downward taper than theslope of the initial downward taper. It is noted that the bottom innersurface can have the taper as described in lieu of the top inner surfacewithout departing from the scope of the invention. Also, both the topand the bottom inner surfaces can have similar tapers as described. Anyinner surface can accomplish the same effect without departing from thescope of the invention.

The objective is to gradually reduce the cross sectional area of theinterior channel using an initial inward taper of the inner surface ofthe interior channel in order to restrict flow, then abruptly increasethe cross sectional area of the interior channel, and then graduallyreduce the cross sectional area again using a secondary inward taperwhere the graduation of the secondary tapered reduction has a steeperinward slope than that of the tapered graduation of the initial slope.This implementation provides for a desired back pressure as the productis being extruded. In one implementation the inner compression chamberis surrounded by an outer housing having straight parallel sides forminga sleeve channel extending from the open infeed port to the open exitport, and where the inner compression chamber is inserted in the sleevechannel and for one implementation said inner compression chamber has acontacting relationship with the straight parallel sides.

Compression Nozzle/Conduit Combined With Precompression Nozzle andCooking Plates:

One implementation of the extrusion horn compression nozzle/conduithaving an inner compression chamber is configured where the open infeedport is communicably connected to a pre-compression nozzle exit port andthe open exit port is communicably connected to a cook plate entry port.For one implementation, the outer housing with the inner compressionchamber inserted therein is mounted to a break action hinge mechanismwhere the break action hinge mechanism rotates about an axisperpendicularly to the interior channel such that it rotates from anengagement position where the open exit port is communicably connectedto the cook plate entry port to a disengagement position where the openexit port is not communicably connected to the cook plate entry port.The break action hinge mechanism used for engagement and disengagementfacilitates access to the interior channel of the compression chamberfor cleaning.

For one implementation of the technology as disclosed and claimedherein, in addition to using the inner compression chamber and outerhousing combination as a compression nozzle, for another implementationthe combination is also combined with a pre-compression nozzle having aconduit communicably extending between a pre-compression nozzle entryportal and the pre-compression nozzle exit portal as illustrated inFIGS. 5 and 6. The conduit has a feeder conduit portion communicablyextending from the pre-compression nozzle entry portal and communicablycontacting in-line end-to-end a tapered portion communicably extendingto the pre-compression nozzle exit portal. The tapered portion of theconduit has an outwardly tapered end and an inwardly tapered end wherethe outwardly tapered end is disposed at an upstream position withrespect to the inwardly tapered end communicably extending to thepre-compression nozzle exit portal.

For one implementation of the extrusion horn including thepre-compression nozzle and the inner compression chamber combination,the outwardly tapered end of the tapered portion of the conduit of thepre-compression nozzle includes an upper outwardly tapered plate and alower outwardly tapered plate each extending downstream and taperedoutwardly one with respect to the other where a distance between theupper outwardly tapered plate and the lower outwardly tapered plateincreases as the upper outwardly tapered plate and lower outwardlytapered plate extend downstream. A distance between outer edges of theupper outwardly tapered plate and the lower outwardly tapered plateincreases as the upper outwardly tapered plate and the lower outwardlytapered plate extend downstream. Also, for one implementation of thetechnology, the outwardly tapered end of the tapered portion of theconduit includes a left-side outwardly tapered plate and a right-sideoutwardly tapered plate each extending downstream and tapered outwardlyone with respect to the other where a distance between the left-sideoutwardly tapered plate and the right-side outwardly tapered plateincreases as the left-side outwardly tapered plate and the right-sideoutwardly tapered plate extend downstream. A distance between outeredges of the left-side outwardly tapered plate and the right-sideoutwardly tapered plate increases as the left-side outwardly taperedplate and the right-side outwardly tapered plate extend downstream.

For yet another implementation of the extrusion horn including acombination of the pre-compression nozzle and the inner compressionchamber, the inwardly tapered end of the tapered portion of the conduitof the pre-compression nozzle includes an upper inwardly tapered plateand a lower inwardly tapered plate each extending downstream and taperedinwardly one with respect to the other where a distance between theupper inwardly tapered plate and the lower inwardly tapered platedecreases as the upper inwardly tapered plate and lower inwardly taperedplate extend downstream. A distance between outer edges of the upperinwardly tapered plate and the lower inwardly tapered plate decreases asthe upper inwardly tapered plate and the lower inwardly tapered plateextend downstream.

The inwardly tapered end of the tapered portion of the conduit includesa left-side inwardly tapered plate and a right-side inwardly taperedplate each extending downstream and tapered inwardly one with respect tothe other where a distance between the left-side inwardly tapered plateand the right-side inwardly tapered plate decreases as the left-sideinwardly tapered plate and the right-side inwardly tapered plate extenddownstream. A distance between outer edges of the left-side inwardlytapered plate and the right-side inwardly tapered plate decreases as theleft-side inwardly tapered plate and the right-side inwardly taperedplate extend downstream.

For one configuration the pre-compression nozzle entry portal is aslitted entry opening in an entry end of the feeder conduit portion. Thepre-compression nozzle exit portal is a slitted exit opening.

Method of Extruding Through a Compression Chamber:

One implementation of the technology as disclosed and claimed herein isa method of extruding extrudate through an extrusion horn. The methodincludes extruding and an extrudate through an interior channel of aninner compression chamber, from an open infeed port of said interiorchannel to an open exit port. The method of extruding the extrudateincludes variably restricting the extrudate flow with a top innersurface of the interior channel, where the top inner surfaceprogressively tapers down with an initial slope, having an initialdownward taper, to a target thickness. The method continues extrudingextrudate through the interior channel to and through a point where thethickness of the channel abruptly steps to an increased thickness. Thetop inner surface of the interior channel then progressively tapers downwith a secondary slope where the secondary slope has a steeper downwardtaper than the initial downward taper. One implementation of the methodincludes providing an outer housing having straight parallel sidesforming a sleeve channel extending from the open infeed port to the openexit port, and where the inner compression chamber is co-axiallyinserted in the sleeve channel and said inner compression chamber iscontacting the straight parallel sides such that the outer housing isresisting outward expansion of the compression chamber.

Method of Extruding Through a Compression Chamber Coupled with aPrecompression Nozzle:

Another implementation of the method of extruding extrudate as disclosedand claimed herein includes extruding extrudate through a conduit of apre-compression nozzle from a pre-compression nozzle entry portal to thepre-compression nozzle exit portal, including extruding extrudatethrough a feeder conduit portion of said conduit. The feeder conduitportion is communicably extending from the pre-compression nozzle entryportal and communicably contacting in-line end-to-end a tapered portioncommunicably extending to the pre-compression nozzle exit portal. Themethod further includes variably extruding the extrudate through thetapered portion of the conduit with an outwardly tapered end and aninwardly tapered end where the outwardly tapered end is disposed at anupstream position with respect to the inwardly tapered end communicablyextending to the pre-compression nozzle exit portal.

Pre-Compression Nozzle:

The technology as disclosed and claimed and as illustrated in FIGS. 1-4is an extrusion horn having a geometry that allows for a uniform flowfrom the discharge end into a cooking section that sets the outersurfaces of continuous flow of all meat species. The technology asdisclosed and claimed allows for uniform product thickness throughoutthe cooking process, increased system throughput, and increased bind inthe sheet leading to overall increased product yields. The technologyeliminates the need for a meat press ahead of the system to setthickness further reducing yields. The technology extrudes a uniformflow of whole muscle/whole muscle and ground proteins uniformly into aheated confined space that is designed to provide ample back pressure onthe product preventing higher than atmospheric pressures resulting fromejecting the product stream prematurely.

The device increases through put by uniformly setting the productthickness thereby allowing for higher cook yields due to a uniformproduct thickness in the final cook step. The technology can beimplemented in a device having a small footprint. The device increasesbind in the sheet thus reducing dicing/slicing losses. The cookingsection of the extrusion horn can sear the food extrudate, such asground meat, under pressure. The taper of the cooking section of theextrusion horn (tapered thick to thin) can apply back pressure to thefood extrudate flow. The cooking section of the extrusion horn seers theproduct on all sides as it passes through thereby cooking the foodextrudate on the fly.

One implementation of the technology as disclosed and claimed is anextrusion horn apparatus including a conduit communicably extendingbetween an entry portal and an exit portal, where said conduit includesa feeder conduit portion communicably extending from the entry portaland communicably contacting a tapered portion. The feeder conduitportion can be in-line and positioned end-to-end to the tapered portion,which communicably extends to the exit portal. Food extrudate can flowin through the entry portal and through an internal channel of thefeeder conduit, which is in fluid communication with the tapered portionsuch that the food extrudate can flow out of the feeder conduit andthrough the tapered portion. The tapered portion of the conduit can havean outwardly tapered end and an inwardly tapered end where the outwardlytapered end is disposed at an upstream position with respect to theinwardly tapered end communicably extending to the exit portal. Theinwardly tapered end can have a sufficient inward angle to provideadequate back pressure on the food extrudate so that the horn extrudes auniform flow. The walls of the tapered portion of the conduit can beconfigured to be heating elements sufficient to sear the food extrudateas it passes through the tapered portion of the conduit.

Pre-Compression Nozzle and Compression Nozzle Conduit Combination:

In another implementation of the technology as disclosed and claimed isan extrusion horn including an inner compression chamber having aninterior channel extending from an open infeed port to an open exitport, where a top inner surface of the interior channel progressivelytapers down with an initial slope having an initial downward taper to atarget thickness, then top inner surface abruptly steps to an increasedthickness of the channel, and then progressively tapers down with asecondary slope where the secondary slope has a steeper downward taperthan the slope of the initial downward taper. The term “downward” isused based on the orientation of the apparatus as shown in FIG. 7C andmore generally in FIGS. 5-8. The taper can alternatively be described asan inward taper where the taper slopes inward toward the central axis ofthe interior channel. The goal essentially is to progressively reducethe cross sectional area of the interior channel. Another implementationof the present technology as disclosed and claimed includes an extrusionhorn apparatus, which teaches a novel apparatus and method for extrudinga product through a tapered portion of a conduit, which providessufficient back pressure to assure a uniform flow and which acts as aheating element to sear the product or extrudate as it passes through.

Cooking Plate Assembly Having Upper and Lower Cooking Plates with Spacerthere Between:

In yet another implementation of the technology, a cooking plateassembly shown in FIG. 9A, having an upper and lower cooking plate andis configured to produce a product that is not a continuous mass orsheet, but rather to produce a product that maintains the separation ofthe original smaller pieces so that the surface of the original smallerpieces are denatured as they pass through the cooking horn and as itexits the cooking plate or where the plates vertically taper inwardly,one with respect to the other, as they extend toward the exit such thatexit portal thickness (height) is sufficiently thin to produce a thinsheet of extrudate product that will readily separate into smallerpieces. The pieces of meat do not cling together forming a continuoussheet. The cooking plate assembly shown in FIG. 9A conveys an extrusionthat is extruded at a reduced pressure so that a continuous mass orsheet is not formed as it passes through the cooking plate. The interiorcooking surface of the interior channel of the cooking plate throughwhich the product travels is constructed of a material that provides anon-stick low-resistance surface so that the product as it is extrudedthrough the cooking plate is conveyed through at a faster rate such thatthe product doesn't back up, thereby assisting the product to not form acontinuous mass or sheet. The thickness or height of the exit portal canbe thin or narrow to further assist the product as it exits to separateinto smaller pieces rather than binding together in a continuous mass orsheet. The interior channel of the cooking plate through which theproduct travels has a graduated narrowing in thickness from the entryportal to the exit portal. The implementation illustrated in FIG. 9G isalso configured with an upper and lower cooking plate with taperedspacers there between where the interior channel of the cooking platethrough which the product travels also has a graduated narrowing inthickness from the entry portal to the exit portal, however, the widthof the channel widens as the upper and lower plates extend from an entryend toward the exit end, such that the product as it is being extrudedthrough the channel maintains the separation of the original smallerpieces so that the surface of the original smaller pieces are denaturedas they pass through the cooking horn and as it exits the cooking plate.

One implementation of the technology is a cooking plate for an extrusionhorn, where the cooking plate includes an upper cooking plate having anupper interior cooking surface and a lower cooking plate having a lowerinterior cooking surface, where the upper interior cooking surface andthe lower interior cooking surface face each other, and where said upperinterior cooking surface is proximately space apart from the lowerinterior cooking surface with a graduated spacing, where the graduatedspacing is defined by a wedge shaped spacer gasket (tapered spacer)positioned between the upper interior cooking surface and the lowerinterior cooking surface.

Heating the Upper and Lower Cooking Plates by Induction:

The upper and lower cooking plates are heated sufficiently to cook theproduct as it is extruded through the interior channel. The cookingplates can be heated using various methods including using a steam orliquid jacket. For one implementation of heating the plates, the cookingplate for the extrusion horn includes an upper induction coil positionedproximate the upper cooking plate and on an opposing side of the uppercooking plate opposite the upper interior cooking surface. The cookingplate also includes a lower induction coil positioned proximate thelower cooking plate and on an opposing side of the lower cooking plateopposite the lower interior cooking surface.

For one implementation of the cooking plate, the cooking plate includesan entry nozzle having a nozzle channel extending from a nozzle entryopening to a nozzle exit opening where said nozzle channel is in fluidcommunication with a horn cooking channel defined by the upper interiorcooking surface, the lower interior cooking surface and where the wedgeshaped spacer gasket (tapered spacer) extends between the upper andlower cooking plates. The cross section of the horn cooking channel hasa cross section that gradually gets smaller from a proximate end of thehorn cooking channel to a distal end of the horn cooking channel in oneimplementation and in another implementation the interior channel alsowidens. The horn exit opening is sufficient small to induce a productbeing extruded to maintain the separation of the original smallerpieces, which were diced/slice or ground into small pieces.

One implementation of the technology includes a method of extrudingextrudate through the extrusion horn that includes the steps of pumpinga product through an interior channel of a cooking plate assembly andbetween an upper and lower interior cooking surface of an upper andlower cooking plate, which form the upper and lower interior side wallof the interior channel. One implementation of the method furtherincludes inducing eddy currents in the upper and lower cooking platesusing induction coils position proximate the upper and lower cookingplates thereby causing a temperature of the upper and lower cookingsurface to increase to a desired cooking temperature. The methodincludes extruding the product through an exit portal having a crosssection whose height is less than that of the entry portal to thechannel and for another implementation the width of the exit portal iswider than the width of the entry portal. The vertical slope (anglebetween the plates) of the upper and lower plates as the verticalspacing between the upper and lower plate lessens and the final verticalheight of the exit portal will depend on the type of product beingprocessed and its density and viscosity and the original piece size ofthe product being extruded. The horizontal or lateral slope (anglebetween the opposing tapered spacers) as the lateral spacing between thespacers widens and the final lateral width of the exit portal will alsodepend on the type of product being processed and its density andviscosity and the original piece size of the product being extruded.

The technology as disclosed and claimed herein can be utilized forvarious protein based extrudate products, such as chicken breasts ortenders, or any animal or plant based protein items. The product canalso be a ground meat product or meat batter or other food extrudatethat can be formed into a final product having a particular shape orform factor after being extruded through the tapered horn device andsubsequently placed in a bag that is vacuum sealed or other casing.These and other advantageous features of the present invention will bein part apparent and in part pointed out herein below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the present invention, reference may bemade to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of an extrusion horn illustrating theentry end;

FIG. 1B is a perspective view of an extrusion horn illustrating the exitend;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of an extrusion horn;

FIG. 3 is a side view of an extrusion horn;

FIG. 4A is an entry end plan view of an extrusion horn illustrating theentry end;

FIG. 4B is an exit end plan view of an extrusion horn illustrating theexit end;

FIG. 4C is a side view of the upper inwardly tapered plate;

FIG. 4D is a side view of the lower inwardly tapered plate;

FIG. 4E is an entry end view of the upper inwardly tapered plate;

FIG. 4F is bottom view of the upper inwardly tapered plate illustratingthe internal channel;

FIG. 4G is an exit end view of the upper inwardly tapered plate;

FIG. 4H is a sectional view of the upper inwardly tapered plateillustrating zones of the heat exchange jacket;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the cooking horn system;

FIG. 6A is a perspective view of a pre compression nozzle;

FIG. 6B is a perspective view illustrating an infeed nozzle;

FIG. 6C is a perspective view illustrating the top portion of thecooking plate;

FIG. 6D is a perspective view illustrating the bottom portion of thecooking plate;

FIG. 7A is an exploded view of the top plate assembly;

FIG. 7B is an exploded view of the bottom plate assembly; and

FIG. 7C is a sectional view of the nozzle;

FIG. 8 is a side view of the cooking horn system;

FIG. 9A is an isometric view of another implementation of the cookingplate assembly;

FIG. 9B is an isometric view of another implementation of the cookingplate assembly with the upper plate removed exposing the interiorchannel and the wedge shaped graduated spacers;

FIG. 9C is a side view of another implementation of the cooking plateassembly mounted on a support frame;

FIG. 9D is an end view of another implementation of the cooking plateassembly illustrating the nozzle input end;

FIG. 9E is an opposing end view of another implementation of the cookingplate assembly illustrating the exit end;

FIG. 9F is a top view of the cooking plate assembly illustrating theouter plate of the induction coils;

FIG. 9G is an illustration of an isometric view of a nozzle and anotherimplementation of the cooking plate assembly that progressively widensas it extends;

FIG. 9H is an isometric illustration of cooking plate assembly and thenozzle;

FIG. 9I is another isometric illustration of cooking plate assembly andthe nozzle;

FIG. 9J is an illustration of another cooking plate assembly mounted ona bracket assembly;

FIG. 9K is an illustration of the cooking plate surface temperature;

FIG. 9L is an illustration of the cooking plate surface temperature inthe various power distribution zones;

FIG. 9M is an illustration of a side view of the induction coil designillustrating the graduated spacing between the coil elements as youtransition from Zone 1 through Zone 4;

FIG. 9N is an illustration of and isometric view of the induction coildesign illustrating the graduated spacing between the coil elements asyou transition from Zone 1 through Zone 4;

FIG. 9O is an illustration detailing the wedge shaped spacer;

FIG. 9P is an illustration of the wedge shaped spacer defining theheight of the exit portal;

FIG. 9Q is a thermal profile of the cooking plate;

FIGS. 9R and 9S is a surface velocity profile;

FIG. 9T is a pressure profile;

FIG. 9U is a plate inside temperature profile;

FIG. 9V is an illustration of a center of cross section temperatureprofile;

FIG. 9W is an illustration of a center line temperature profile;

FIG. 9X is an illustration of a temperature profile 1 mm off the center;

FIG. 9Y is an illustration of a temperature profile 1 mm off the center;

FIG. 10 is an illustration of a non-continuous process;

FIG. 11 is an illustration of the cooking process; and

FIG. 12A through 12I, is an illustration of a cooking plate assembly incombination with a conveyance system.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications andalternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way ofexample in the drawings and will herein be described in detail. Itshould be understood, however, that the drawings and detaileddescription presented herein are not intended to limit the invention tothe particular embodiment disclosed, but on the contrary, the intentionis to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives fallingwithin the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by theappended claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION

According to the embodiment(s) of the present invention, various viewsare illustrated in FIG. 1-12 and like reference numerals are being usedconsistently throughout to refer to like and corresponding parts of theinvention for all of the various views and figures of the drawing. Also,please note that the first digit(s) of the reference number for a givenitem or part of the invention should correspond to the FIG. number inwhich the item or part is first identified.

One implementation of the technology as disclosed and claimed is anextrusion horn including an inner compression chamber having an interiorchannel extending from an open infeed port to an open exit port, where atop inner surface of the interior channel progressively tapers down withan initial slope having an initial downward taper to a target thickness,then top inner surface abruptly steps to an increased thickness of thechannel, and then progressively tapers down with a secondary slope wherethe secondary slope has a steeper downward taper than the slope of theinitial downward taper. The term “downward” is used based on theorientation of the apparatus as shown in FIG. 7C and more generally inFIGS. 5-8. The taper can alternatively be described as an inward taperwhere the taper slopes inward toward the central axis of the interiorchannel. The goal essentially is to progressively reduce the crosssectional area of the interior channel. Another implementation of thepresent technology as disclosed and claimed includes an extrusion hornapparatus, which teaches a novel apparatus and method for extruding aproduct through a tapered portion of a conduit, which providessufficient back pressure to assure a uniform flow and which acts as aheating element to sear the product or extrudate as it passes through.

The details of the invention and various embodiments can be betterunderstood by referring to the figures of the drawing. Referring to FIG.5 a perspective view illustrating a cooking horn system 500 is shown.The illustration as shown reflects an implementation were apre-compression nozzle 502 is being used in combination with thepre-compression infeed nozzle 503 including a compression chamber andouter housing as further described herein. However, for oneimplementation the pre-compression infeed nozzle 503 is used without thepre-compression nozzle 502 as illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8 of thedrawing, where the infeed nozzle 503 is used with a basic tapered nozzle516.

The cooking plate 504 is mounting in a support frame 520. The cookingplate has an upper plate and a lower plate as illustrated in FIGS. 6 and7. The upper and lower plates are compressed together by compressionmembers 526 and tension members 524. The infeed nozzle 503 is a conduitbetween and communicably linking the cooking plate and pre compressionnozzle 502. In the case of the implementation where the pre compressionnozzle 502 is not used, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the infeed nozzle 503is communicably linked directly to the extrudate channel 512. Product isplaced in a hopper 508 and the product is mixed using a mixing drum 510having mixing appendages extending radially outward from the drum toassist with mixing. In one implementation the drum is powered by a motorassembly 506, which in one implementation also powers a grinder forcreating the extrudate product.

An extruder can be powered by an extruder motor assembly 514 that pushesthe extrudate through an extrudate channel 512, or infeed pipe, thatcommunicably links the extruder assembly and the pre-compression nozzle502. The extrudate is then pushed through the pre-compression nozzleinto the infeed nozzle. Power unit 522 provides power to the cookingplate 504. In the case of the implementation where the pre compressionnozzle 502 is not used, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the infeed nozzle 503is communicably linked directly to the extrudate channel 512. Therefore,one implementation of the technology is configured without thepre-compression nozzle 502. The infeed nozzle as described hereinprovides sufficient pre-compression and this implementation isillustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8 where nozzle 716 is utilized in lieu ofnozzle 502.

Referring to FIGS. 7A and 7B, a side perspective exploded view of the ofthe top 612 and bottom 614 portions of the cooking plate are shown alongwith the infeed nozzle 503 having an exterior tight fitting housing 706and compression chamber 708. Also shown is one implementation of atransition nozzle 716 and inlet flange gasket 712 and outlet 710 flangegasket for the infeed nozzle 503. The infeed nozzle 503 is mounted on arotatable break action hinge bracket 714 mechanism that is rotatable toengage and disengage the infeed nozzle 503 with the cooking plate 504,as illustrated in FIG. 8. Spacer 702 and 704 are also illustrated as gapspacers between the top 612 and the bottom 614 portions of the cookingplate, which can define the height in this configuration (or the crosssectional area) of the channel between the plates 612 and 614. Thespacer diameters can be increase to increase the volume and flowcapacity of the channel between the upper and lower plates to increasethe flow and thickness (height) of the extrudate that flows therethrough. The cooking plate portions illustrated in FIGS. 7A and 7B areof similar configuration and implementation as illustrated in FIG. 6.Also illustrated in FIGS. 7A and 7B is the bottom plate 624, whichincludes compression member mounts 619 and tension cylinder mounts 618.The bottom plate also includes alignment pins 620 and 622 that insertthrough alignment eyelets 744 and 745 of the top plate 612. The topplate 612 includes compression member mounts 626 and tension cylindermounts 616.

Referring to FIG. 7C, a sectional view of the compression chamberinserted in to the outer housing and communicably connected to thecooking plates 612 and 614, and the transition nozzle 716. Thetransition nozzle 716 has an outer wall 732 and an interior channel 722that is in fluid communication with the interior channel 720 of thecompression chamber 708. A top surface of the interior channelprogressively tapers down with an initial slope 726 having an initialdownward taper to a target thickness 721, then abruptly steps 728 to anincreased thickness (height, which decrease cross sectional area of theinterior channel), and then progressively tapers down with a secondaryslope 730 back downward to the target thickness 721 where the secondaryslope has a steeper downward taper than the initial downward taper. Anouter housing 706 having straight parallel sides 734 forming a sleevechannel extending from the open infeed port 736 to the open exit port738, and where the inner compression chamber 708 is inserted in thesleeve channel and said inner compression chamber has a contactingrelationship 740 with the straight parallel sides which surround theinner compression chamber. The interior channel 720 is in fluidcommunication with the plate channel 724 between plates 612 and 614.

Referring to FIG. 8, a side view of the cooking plate 504 mounted in aframe assembly 808 is illustrated. Also illustrated is the operation ofthe rotatable break action hinge bracket 714 mechanism on which theinfeed nozzle 503 is mounted. FIG. 8 illustrates the operation of thebracket as the infeed nozzle is rotated to various positions —802, 804and 806. Position 802, illustrated in solid lines, is the fully engagedposition where the infeed nozzle 503 is communicably connected with thecooking plates. Position 804, illustrated with broken lines, reflects apartially retracted and disengaged position and position 806, alsoillustrated in broken lines, reflects a fully retracted position.

Referring to FIG. 6A, a perspective view illustrating a pre compressionnozzle 502 is shown. The pre compression nozzle 502 includes an entryportal 602 and an exit portal 606 communicably linked to the infeednozzle for the extrudate. This pre-compression nozzle configuration asillustrated has a similar configuration to that of the tapered portion104 of FIG. 1. The nozzle has an outwardly tapered end and an inwardlytapered end as it extends along the flow path from an upstream positionto a downstream position, where the outwardly tapered end is disposed atan upstream position with respect to the inwardly tapered end.

The inwardly tapered end can include an upper inwardly tapered plate anda lower inwardly tapered plate each extending downstream and taperedinwardly one with respect to the other where a distance between theupper inwardly tapered plate and the lower inwardly tapered platedecreases as the upper inwardly tapered plate and lower inwardly taperedplate extend downstream. A distance between outer edges of the upperinwardly tapered plate and the lower inwardly tapered plate can decreaseas the upper inwardly tapered plate and the lower inwardly tapered plateextend downstream.

The inwardly tapered end can include a left-side inwardly tapered plateand a right-side inwardly tapered plate each extending downstream andtapered inwardly one with respect to the other where a distance betweenthe left-side inwardly tapered plate and the right-side inwardly taperedplate decreases as the left-side inwardly tapered plate and theright-side inwardly tapered plate extend downstream, and where adistance between outer edges of the left-side inwardly tapered plate andthe right-side inwardly tapered plate decreases as the left-sideinwardly tapered plate and the right-side inwardly tapered plate extenddownstream.

The outwardly tapered end includes an upper outwardly tapered plate anda lower outwardly tapered plate each extending downstream and taperedoutwardly one with respect to the other where a distance between theupper outwardly tapered plate and the lower outwardly tapered plateincreases as the upper outwardly tapered plate and lower outwardlytapered plate extend downstream, and where a distance between outeredges of the upper outwardly tapered plate and the lower outwardlytapered plate increases as the upper outwardly tapered plate and thelower outwardly tapered plate extend downstream. The outwardly taperedend includes a left-side outwardly tapered plate and a right-sideoutwardly tapered plate each extending downstream and tapered outwardlyone with respect to the other where a distance between the left-sideoutwardly tapered plate and the right-side outwardly tapered plateincreases as the left-side outwardly tapered plate and the right-sideoutwardly tapered plate extend downstream, and where a distance betweenouter edges of the left-side outwardly tapered plate and the right-sideoutwardly tapered plate increases as the left-side outwardly taperedplate and the right-side outwardly tapered plate extend downstream.

Referring to FIG. 6B, a perspective view illustrating an infeed nozzleis shown. The infeed nozzle 503 includes a compression chamber enclosedin a tight fitting housing that is connected between the pre-compressionnozzle 502 and the cooking plates 504. In one implementation thecompression chamber is milled out of a plastic block and having aninterior flow channel with the desired thickness and taper. In oneimplementation, the interior flow channel of the compression chamber cantaper down (narrow) to a target thickness in the direction of flow andabruptly widen by approximately one inch and then taper down (narrow)again to the desired target thickness. The taper is designated toprogressively reduce the cross sectional area of the interior flowchannel to restrict the flow of extrudate. See FIG. 7C for a crosssectional view of the compression chamber illustrating the taper of thecompression chamber's interior channel. The compression chamber isremovable for cleaning.

Referring to FIG. 6C, a perspective view illustrating the top portion612 of the cooking plate 504 is shown. The top plate 612 includescompression member mounts 626 and tension cylinder mounts 616.

Referring to FIG. 6D, a perspective view illustrating the bottom portion624 of the cooking plate 504 is shown. The bottom plate 624 includescompression member mounts 614 and tension cylinder mounts 618. Thebottom plate also includes alignment pins 622 that insert throughalignment eyelets of the top plate 612.

Referring to FIG. 9A a side view of another implementation of thecooking plate assembly 900 is shown. The cooking plate 504 as shown inFIG. 6D can be replaced with another cooking plate implementation forother products or can be used independently of items 502 and 503. Thecooking plate assembly 900 shown in FIG. 9A is configured to produce aproduct that is not a continuous mass or sheet, but rather to produceand extrude an output product that separates into smaller pieces as itexits the cooking plate assembly 900. Examples of products that can beproduced with this implementation include ground meat, beef jerky andbacon bit products.

The cooking plate assembly 900 shown in FIG. 9A conveys an extrusionthat is extruded at a reduced pressure so that a continuous mass orsheet is not formed as it passes through the cooking plate assembly. Theinterior cooking surface 902, as seen in FIG. 9B, of the interiorchannel 904 of the cooking plate assembly 900 through which the producttravels is constructed of a material that provides a non-sticklow-friction coefficient surface so that the product as it is extrudedthrough the cooking plate assembly 900 is conveyed through at a fasterrate such that the product doesn't back up, thereby assisting theproduct to not form a continuous mass or sheet, but to maintainseparation of the original individual pieces.

The thickness or height (h) 906 of the exit portal can be thin or narrowto further assist the product as it exits to maintain separation of theoriginal smaller pieces rather than binding together in a continuousmass or sheet. The thickness of the exit portal also provides a certainproduct slice thickness. The interior channel 904 of the cooking plateassembly 900 through which the product travels can have a graduatednarrowing in thickness from the entry portal 908 to the exit portal 910.The upper surface of the interior channel and the lower surface 902 ofthe interior channel are proximately spaced apart and slope inwardly onewith respect to the other, thereby having a graduated narrowing inthickness or height from the entry portal 908 to the exit portal 910.The narrowing thickness or spacing could result in an increasedpressure; however, this is counteracted by the reduced pressure underwhich the product is being pumped through the interior channel 904, andthe non-stick, low-resistance surface 902 of the interior channel. Inone implementation, the widening of the interior channel can reducepressure.

The interior cooking surfaces of the interior channel are heated byinduction heating. The cooking plate utilizes electrically conductingcoils that generate eddy currents that cause the conductive plates toheat up. Induction heating is a non-contact method of heating aconductive body (i.e. plates) by utilizing a strong magnetic field fromthe specially designed coils. The coils do not contact the conductiveplates. The conductive plates heat up responsive to its proximity to thestrong magnetic field. The heated plates contact and heat up the meat.The advantage of an inductive heating system and method is that theheating temperature of the plates can reach a very high temperature(approximately 500 degrees F.) ins a short period of time and thesurface temperature of the plates can be controlled by adjusting thepower output to the coils. An induction heater consists of anelectromagnet, and an electronic oscillator that passes a high-frequencyalternating current (AC) through the electromagnet. The rapidlyalternating magnetic field penetrates the object, generating electriccurrents inside a conductor called eddy currents. The eddy currentsflowing through the resistance of the material heat it by Joule heating.In ferromagnetic (and ferromagnetic materials like iron, heat may alsobe generated by magnetic hysteresis losses. The frequency of currentused depends on the object size, material type, coupling (between thework coil and the object to be heated) and the penetration depth. Animportant feature of the induction heating process is that the heat isgenerated inside the object itself, instead of by an external heatsource via heat conduction. Therefore, objects can be heated veryrapidly. In addition there need not be any external contact.

Therefore the interior cooking surface 902 of the cooking plate asdisclosed and claimed herein can be heated by induction heating.Induction cooking is quite efficient, which means it puts less wasteheat into the surrounding assembly. Induction heating can be quicklyturned on and off, and is easily controlled for heating level. Inductioncooking provides faster heating, improved thermal efficiency, and moreconsistent heating than cooking by thermal conduction, with more precisecontrol over the heat provided. Therefore, the heat applied by theinterior cooking surface to the product can be more preciselycontrolled. FIG. 9B provides an illustration of a lower cooking plate912 and the upper cooking plate 914 is seen in FIG. 9A. A spacer orlateral seal 916 defines the spacing between the upper cooking plate 914and the lower cooking plate 912 and provides a side seal between theupper and lower and defines the side wall 918 of the cooking channel904.

Referring to FIG. 9B, a side isometric view of the lower cooking plate912 is illustrated. FIG. 9O illustrates the spacer or lateral seal,which defines the height (h) 906 of the cooking channel 904. FIG. 9Pprovides a detail of the spacer between the upper and lower plates andhow the spacer fits in the lengthwise grooves 911 and 909 of the upperand lower plates thereby forming a seal between the plates.

Referring to FIG. 9F a top view of another implementation of the cookingplate assembly is shown mounted on a support frame and having aninduction heating assembly. The top review reveals a top cover plate 920containing the inductive heating assembly for the top cooking surface.The dashed broken lines illustrate the windings 922 of the inductionelement. The top view also reveals the electrical conduits 924 and 926that supply power to the induction elements. The cooking plate assemblyentry portal is communicably attached to a nozzle 928 through which theproduct is pumped and channeled into the interior channel of the cookingplate assembly. Referring to FIG. 9D an end view of anotherimplementation of the cooking plated assembly is shown illustrating thenozzle input 930. The entry portal of the cooking plate assembly iscommunicably connected to the output of the nozzle. FIG. 9E illustratesthe exit portal 910 of the cooking plate assembly.

Referring to back to FIG. 9A, an isometric view of the cooking plateassembly 900 is shown. An isometric view of a cooking plate housing isillustrated. The cooking plate housing includes and upper elongatedplate 914 and a lower elongated plate 912 where the upper and lowerelongated plates are proximately spaced apart. The distance or spacingbetween the upper and lower plates gradually reduces from the entry end908 to the exit end 910. The upper and lower plates and the lateralspacer gaskets 916 define an interior channel 904 that extends from anentry portal or entry opening 908 to an exit portal or exit opening 910.The lateral spacer gaskets 916 can have a wedge shaped geometry in orderto provide the graduated spacing. The thickness or height (h) 906 of theexit portal, defined by the spacing between the upper and lower plates,can be thin or narrow to further assist the product as it exits toseparate into smaller pieces rather than binding together in acontinuous mass or sheet. The interior channel 904 of the cooking plateassembly 900 through which the product travels can have a graduatednarrowing in thickness from the entry portal to the exit portal. Theexit portal has a thin slit or slot like cross section where the widthis more than five times the length of the height. The graduated spacingbetween the upper and lower cooking plates are such that spacing betweenthe plates get gradually less from the entry portal to the exit portalsuch that for one implementation the ratio of the height between theexit portal and the entry portal is 3-4 as opposed to 1:1. The distancebetween the two plates at the exit portal (height of the exit portal) isdependent on the thickness of the slice product being extruded throughthe horn, e.g. if the sliced meat has a thickness of 6 mm, the height ofthe exit portal is approximately 5-7 mm. Therefore, the exit portal hasa height such that the product as it exits maintains separation of theoriginal pieces and doesn't cling together or overlap as they are beingextruded through the cooking horn. If the exit portal has a height thatis much less than the product slice thickness then the pressure wouldbuild up for the inlet stream and within the cooking horn.

The upper and lower plates have upper and lower interior surfaces, whichcontact the product as the product flows through the interior channel904. The upper surface of the interior channel and the lower surface ofthe interior channel slope inwardly one with respect to the other,thereby having a graduated narrowing in thickness or height from theentry portal to the exit portal. The upper plate's upper surface (notshown) is essentially the mirror image of the lower plate's lowersurface 902. The narrowing thickness could result in an increasedpressure; however, this is counteracted by the reduced pressure underwhich the product is being pumped through the interior channel, and thenon-stick, low-resistance surface (low-friction) of the upper and lowersurfaces of the interior channel.

The spacing between the upper plated and the lower plate is defined bythe elongated spacer gaskets 916 and 917, which have a graduatedthickness that reduces gradually along the length of the elongatedspacer gasket from a proximal end 919 to a distal end 921. FIG. 9Billustrates the interior channel 904 and the lengthwise graduation inthickness of the lateral spacer gaskets 916 and 917. The elongatedlateral spacer gaskets have lengthwise upper and lower ridges 901 and903 that protrude from the upper and lower surfaces 905 and 907 of thespacer gaskets respectively; and the upper and lower ridges extend alonginterior side upper and lower edges, respectively, of the spacergaskets. The upper and lower ridges of the spacer gaskets project intoand fit within an upper elongated lengthwise groove in the upper plateand a lower elongated lengthwise grooves in the lower and upper platesrespectively (note: the opposing side illustrates the upper plate andlower plate having the upper and lower elongated lengthwise grooves, 909and 911, which are a mirror image), thereby forming an interlocking sealbetween the spacer gasket and the upper and lower plates.

The interior surfaces of the upper and lower plates are cooking surfacesof the interior channel and are heated by induction heating. The upperplate's upper surface (not shown) is essentially the mirror image of thelower plate's lower surface 902. An important feature of the inductionheating process is that the heat is generated inside the object itself,instead of by an external heat source via heat conduction. Therefore,objects can be heated very rapidly. In addition there need not be anyexternal contact between the induction element and the interior cookingsurface. The interior cooking surface of the interior channel of thecooking plate through which the product travels is constructed of amaterial that provides a non-stick low-resistance (low-friction) surfaceso that the product as it is extruded through the cooking plate isconveyed through at a faster rate such that the product doesn't back up,thereby assisting the product to not form a continuous mass or sheet.

The implementation as illustrated in FIG. 9 is configured to prevent theproduct from cooking together as it travels through the horn. As productprogresses through horn the cross section of the horn is graduallychanging (the height or thickness is gradually becoming smaller) and thevelocity of the product traveling through the horn changes and createsseparation of the individual pieces. The objective is to produce a thinloose open layer of the extrudate, whereby there are spaces or openingsbetween the pieces. The is accomplished by lessened pressure in horn,intensive heat using inductive heating rather than steam or conductiveheat, and a coated cooking plate to reduce friction and sticking. Theproduct cooks more with the implementation illustrated in FIG. 9, thanthe other implementations illustrated in FIGS. 1-8. With theimplementation illustrated in FIG. 9, the product is cooked downsignificantly such that the weight of the product may be decreased by asmuch as 70% from the input weight of the product. The implementation asillustrated in FIG. 9 operates at a higher temperature than the otherimplementations. The induction heating coil is mounted on top and bottomof horn assembly, where the horn is sandwiched by the two coils. Thecoil is connected to a high-frequency power supply causing the coil togenerate a magnetic field and the metal based horn is within themagnetic field being generated whereby eddy currents are generated inthe horn and the horn tries to resist the field whereby the cookingplate gets very hot in a very short period of time. Induction generatorscan work in a frequency range from 100 kHz up to 10 MHz. More commonly,heating devices with induction heating control have a frequency range of100 Hz to 200 kHz. The frequency chosen is based on the heating platematerial properties and thickness.

Also, as discussed, there is a coating on the interior surface of thecooking plate to reduce friction and aid in sanitation. The heattransfer coefficient is improved over other implementations. The intakediameter of the input pipe feeding the horn should be appropriatelysized in combination with the force of the pump to reduce pressure. Thedistance between the cooking plates and the angle of the taper willdepend on the type of the product is being processed and the flow rate.The representative types of product being processed by thisconfiguration can include, Ground meat, Pork Belly (bacon bits) and beefjerky. The cooking plate assembly can have an exterior non-conductiveplate covering the coils.

Referring to FIGS. 9G through 9N and 9Q through 9Y, a cooking hornassembly is illustrated that is very similar to the cooking hornassembly illustrated in FIGS. 9A and 9B. The cooking horn assembly 940is attached to an entry nozzle 942 as illustrated in 9H and 9I. Afurther detail of the cooking horn is provide in FIG. 9G, whichillustrates the entry nozzle 947 and the cooking plate assembly 944. Thecooking plate assembly 944 includes an upper cooking plate 952 and alower cooking plate 954 with a graduated spacer 950 there between.Similar to the cooking plate assembly illustrated in FIGS. 9A and 9B,the upper 952 and lower 954 plates and the lateral spacer gaskets 950define an interior channel that extends from an entry portal or entryopening to an exit portal or exit opening 948. The lateral spacergaskets 950 can have a wedge shaped geometry in order to provide thegraduated spacing. The thickness or height of the exit portal, definedby the spacing between the upper and lower plates, can be thin or narrowto further assist the product as it exits to separate into smallerpieces rather than binding together in a continuous mass or sheet.

Similar to the implementation illustrated in FIGS. 9A and 9B, thisimplementation as illustrated in FIG. 9G, has an interior channel of thecooking plate assembly through which the product travels and has agraduated narrowing in thickness from the entry portal to the exitportal. The exit portal has a thin slit or slot like cross section wherethe width is more than five times the length of the height. Thegraduated spacing between the upper and lower cooking plates are suchthat spacing between the plates get gradually less from the entry portalto the exit portal such that for one implementation the ratio of theheight between the exit portal and the entry portal is 3-4 as opposed to1:1 and the ratio of the width of entry portal and exit portal is0.45-0.67 as opposed to 1:1. The implementation illustrated in FIG. 9Gincludes upper and lower cooking plates that widen as they extend towardthe exit portal, results in a widening of the interior channel.Therefore, the spacing between the spacers also increases with thewidening plates and widening interior channel.

The distance between the two plates at the exit portal (height of theexit portal) is dependent on the thickness of the slice product beingextruded through the horn, e.g. if the sliced meat has a thickness of 6mm, the height of the exit portal is approximately 5-7 mm. Therefore,the exit portal has a height such that the product as it exits maintainsseparation of the original pieces and doesn't cling together or overlapas they are being extruded through the cooking horn. If the exit portalhas a height that is much less than the product slice thickness then thepressure would build up for the inlet stream and within the cookinghorn.

The upper and lower plates have upper and lower interior surfaces, whichcontact the product as the product flows through the interior channel.The upper surface of the interior channel and the lower surface of theinterior channel slope inwardly one with respect to the other, therebyhaving a graduated narrowing in thickness or height from the entryportal to the exit portal. The upper plate's upper surface isessentially the mirror image of the lower plate's lower surface. Thenarrowing thickness could result in an increased pressure; however, thisis counteracted by the reduced pressure under which the product is beingpumped through the interior channel and/or a widening of the channel,and the non-stick, low-resistance surface (low-friction) of the upperand lower surfaces of the interior channel.

The spacing between the upper plated and the lower plate is defined bythe elongated spacer gaskets 950, which have a graduated thickness thatreduces gradually along the length of the elongated spacer gasket from aproximal end to a distal end. Similar to the implementation in FIGS. 9Aand 9B, the implementation in FIG. 9G has the elongated lateral spacergaskets and has lengthwise upper and lower ridges that protrude from theupper and lower surfaces of the spacer gaskets respectively; and theupper and lower ridges extend along interior side upper and lower edges,respectively, of the spacer gaskets. The upper and lower ridges of thespacer gaskets project into and fit within an upper elongated lengthwisegroove in the upper plate and a lower elongated lengthwise grooves inthe lower and upper plates respectively, thereby forming an interlockingseal between the spacer gasket and the upper and lower plates.

The interior surfaces of the upper and lower plates are cooking surfacesof the interior channel and are heated by induction heating. The upperplate's upper surface is essentially the mirror image of the lowerplate's lower surface. An important feature of the induction heatingprocess is that the heat is generated inside the object itself bynon-contacting induction, instead of by an external contacting heatsource via heat conduction. Therefore, objects can be heated veryrapidly. In addition there need not be any external contact between theinduction element and the interior cooking surface. The interior cookingsurface of the interior channel of the cooking plate through which theproduct travels is constructed of a material that provides a non-sticklow-resistance (low-friction) surface so that the product as it isextruded through the cooking plate is conveyed through at a faster ratesuch that the product doesn't back up, thereby assisting the product tonot form a continuous mass or sheet.

The implementation as illustrated in FIG. 9 is configured to prevent theproduct from cooking together as it travels through the horn. As productprogresses through horn the cross section of the horn is graduallychanging (the height or thickness is gradually becoming smaller) and thevelocity of the product traveling through the horn changes and createsseparation of the individual pieces. The objective is to produce a thinloose open layer of the extrudate, whereby there are spaces or openingsbetween the pieces. The is accomplished by lessened pressure in horn,intensive heat using inductive heating rather than steam or conductiveheat, and a coated cooking plate to reduce friction and sticking. Theproduct cooks more with the implementation illustrated in FIG. 9, thanthe other implementations illustrated in FIGS. 1-8. With theimplementation illustrated in FIG. 9, the product is cooked downsignificantly such that the weight of the product may be decreased by asmuch as 70% from the input weight of the product. The implementation asillustrated in FIG. 9 operates at a higher temperature than the otherimplementations. The induction heating coil is mounted on top and bottomof horn assembly, where the horn is sandwiched by the two coils. Thecoil is connected to a high-frequency power supply causing the coil togenerate a magnetic field and the metal based horn is within themagnetic field being generated whereby eddy currents are generated inthe horn and the horn tries to resist the field whereby the cookingplate gets very hot in a very short period of time. Induction generatorscan work in a frequency range from 100 kHz up to 10 MHz. More commonly,heating devices with induction heating control have a frequency range of100 Hz to 200 kHz. The frequency chosen is based on the heating platematerial properties and thickness.

Also, as discussed, there is a coating on the interior surface of thecooking plate to reduce friction and aid in sanitation. The heattransfer coefficient is improved over other implementations.

FIG. 9J illustrates the cooking horn mounted in a mounting bracket 956.The cooking horn is mounted adjacent an induction coil assembly 958.

FIG. 9K illustrates the surface temperature under uniform powerdistribution. FIG. 9L illustrates the power distribution ratio and thesurface temperature across the various zones of the cooking surface.FIGS. 9M and 9N illustrate the serpentine induction coil configuration.FIG. 9M illustrates a sectional view of the induction coils 960, whichillustrates the variation in spacing between the coils from the entryend to the exit end. The spacing 963 between the coil element as itfollows the serpentine pattern widens as it extends toward the exit end.FIG. 9N further illustrates the increase in the spacing 962 between theruns of the induction element 960. The induction coil (element) ismounted on a plate 958 of the induction coil assembly. FIG. 9Qillustrates the thermal profile. The surface velocity magnitude of aproduct traveling through the horn is illustrated in FIGS. 9R and 9S.The surface pressure is illustrated in FIG. 9T. FIG. 9U illustrates asimulation of the temperature profile. FIGS. 9V through 9Y illustrate acenter line cross section temperature profile.

FIGS. 10 and 11 illustrate non-continuous and continuous process flows.The continuous process flow better utilizes the whole muscle meat andprovides for a shorter process time and greater process efficiency. Thecontinuous process requires less labor and less energy consumption,therefore, resulting in a lower cost process. The cooking horn in thisprocess is utilized for cooking and separating. The cooking plateassembly 900 shown in FIG. 9A is configured to produce a product that isnot a continuous mass or sheet, but rather to produce and extrude anoutput product that separates into smaller pieces as it exits thecooking plate assembly 900. Examples of products that can be producedwith this implementation include ground meat, beef jerky and bacon bitproducts. The cooking is provided by induction heating rather thantraditional conduction heating. The product is pumped into the horn at alower pressure than typical so that pressure doesn't build sufficientlyto slow down the flow of the product.

In the continuous process seen in FIG. 11, the whole muscle meat, havingan original product weight, is diced and/or sliced at the beginning ofthe process. The diced/sliced product is tumbled and/or mixed with driedseasoning ingredients including salt, sugar, flavoring and spices. Thetumbled/mixed product is pumped into a cooking horn. The various cookinghorn implementations are illustrated in FIGS. 9A through 9N areconfigured appropriately for this continuous process as shown in FIG.11. The cooking horn will cook and promote maintaining separation of theproduct in the original smaller pieces rather than extruding acontinuous mass and/or sheet of extruded product. The product is pumpedinto the horn at a lower pressure than typical so that pressure doesn'tbuild sufficiently to slow down the flow of the product. As previouslydescribed, a more efficient inductive heating element can be utilizedwith the continuous process as illustrated. The temperature of theextruded product can exit the horn at a temperature of about 160 degreesFahrenheit. The surface temperature of the extruded product could reachwater boiling temperature in a very short period of time—within 10seconds. The extruded product as it exits the horn falls onto an ovenconveyor belt where it is conveyed through an oven for drying theproduct. One implementation of the oven is a spiral oven for drying. Thedried product is then transitioned to the grilling step. The driedproduct should be less than 85% of the original product weight. Thegrilled product is cooled and is further size reduced as needed. Oneimplementation of size reduction is dicing the cooled product. Theproduct is packaged for further distribution.

Table 1 below provides test data from an R&D Test Unit and a Productiondesign.

TABLE 1 R&D Production Plate Test Unit Design Design Raw Production(lb/hr) 750 4500 Raw Production (kg/s) 0.094 0.567 Density(kg/m{circumflex over ( )}3) 1010 Density 1010 (kg/m{circumflex over( )}3) Inlet Temperature (F.) 36 36 Outlet Temperature (F.) 180 180Bacon Heat Capacity (kJ/kg.C.) 3.02 3.02 Water Latent Heat 1950 1950Vaporization (kJ/kg) Vaporization Loss  1%  1% Cooking Yield 30% 30%Finish Thoughput (lb/hr) 225 1350 Feed Section Infeed Pipe Diameter (in)2.5 6 Cross Section of pipe 31.7 182.4 area (cm{circumflex over ( )}2)Outlet Width difference 1.75 8 with diameter (in) Feed horn Length (in)5.5 18 Angle (deg) 17.7 24.0 Cross section area 0.917 1.012 reduce ratio( I/O) Heating Section Inlet Width (in) 6 in 22 in Inlet Thickness (mm)19.05 .075 33.02  1.3 Inlet Cross section Area (cm{circumflex over( )}2) 29.03 184.52 Out Width (in) 9 38 Out Thickness (mm) 4 4 Out Crosssection Area (cm{circumflex over ( )}2) 9.14 38.61 Inlet/outlet arearation 0.315 0.209 Length (ft) 4 8 Section Area Total Power Kw/ TempWide alpha 0.3123983 0.083141232 Length Zone (m) Length Ratiom{circumflex over ( )}2 (F.) Zone  1 1.97 0.36558 0.600 1.200456 16.1%33.03 383 Height Angle 0.35 0.34  2 1.97 0.42567 0.600 1.800912 14.3%25.20 423 Top side Heating area (m{circumflex over ( )}2) 0.232 1.858  31.97 0.48576 0.600 2.401368 24.0% 37.06 512 Btn side Heating area(m{circumflex over ( )}2) 0.232 1.858  4 2.09 0.58105 0.637 3.0384  45.6% 58.86 550 Total heating Area (m{circumflex over ( )}2) 0.46553.117 3.716 Avg dwell Time (s) 24.9 48.5 Ratio of (lb/m{circumflex over( )}2 heating area) 1615 1211 Bacon bit Speed from 0.102 0.145 outlet(m/s) Ratio of output rate per 64.91 24.99 40.3647 heat area(lb/m{circumflex over ( )}2/s) Act. Energy Require (kw) 25 148 PowerDensity (kW/m{circumflex over ( )}2) 53.1 39.8 in heating plate Powersupplier @ 70% eff (kW) 35 211 One Induction heat unit (kw) 35 250 NeedUnit Induction Heat Units 1 1 Amperage for 3PH 480 V (A) 52.85 377.5

Referring to FIGS. 12A through 12I, a cooking plate assembly 1200 isillustrated including a cooking plate 1202 mounted on a support frame1204. The cooking plate 1202 includes a top plate having compressionmember mounts and tension cylinder mounts. The cooking plate 1202further includes a bottom plate having compression member mounts andtension cylinder mounts. The cooking plate is mounting in a supportframe 1204. The upper and lower plates are compressed together bycompression members and tension members. The cooking plate assembly 1200shown conveys an extrusion that is extruded at a reduced pressure sothat a continuous mass or sheet is not formed as it passes through thecooking plate assembly. The interior cooking surface of the interiorchannel of the cooking plate 1202 through which the product travels isconstructed of a material that provides a non-stick low-frictioncoefficient surface so that the product as it is extruded through thecooking plate assembly is conveyed through at a faster rate such thatthe product doesn't back up, thereby assisting the product to not form acontinuous mass or sheet, but to maintain separation of the originalindividual pieces.

The thickness or height of the exit portal can be thin or narrow tofurther assist the product as it exits to maintain separation of theoriginal smaller pieces rather than binding together in a continuousmass or sheet. The thickness of the exit portal also provides a certainproduct slice thickness. The interior channel of the cooking plateassembly through which the product travels can have a graduatednarrowing in thickness from the entry portal to the exit portal. Theupper surface of the interior channel and the lower surface of theinterior channel are proximately spaced apart and for oneimplementation, slopes inwardly one with respect to the other, therebyhaving a graduated narrowing in thickness or height from the entryportal to the exit portal. The narrowing thickness or spacing couldresult in an increased pressure; however, this is counteracted by thereduced pressure under which the product is being pumped through theinterior channel, and the non-stick, low-resistance surface of theinterior channel. In one implementation, the widening of the interiorchannel can reduce pressure.

For one implementation of the cooking plate, the interior cookingsurfaces of the interior channel are heated by induction heating. Thecooking plate utilizes electrically conducting coils that generate eddycurrents that cause the conductive plates to heat up. Induction heatingis a non-contact method of heating a conductive body (i.e. plates) byutilizing a strong magnetic field from the specially designed coils. Thecoils do not contact the conductive plates. The conductive plates heatup responsive to its proximity to the strong magnetic field. The heatedplates contact and heat up the meat. The advantage of an inductiveheating system and method is that the heating temperature of the platescan reach a very high temperature (approximately 500 degrees F.) ins ashort period of time and the surface temperature of the plates can becontrolled by adjusting the power output to the coils. An inductionheater consists of an electromagnet, and an electronic oscillator thatpasses a high-frequency alternating current (AC) through theelectromagnet. The rapidly alternating magnetic field penetrates theobject, generating electric currents inside a conductor called eddycurrents. The eddy currents flowing through the resistance of thematerial heat it by Joule heating. In ferromagnetic (and ferromagneticmaterials like iron, heat may also be generated by magnetic hysteresislosses. The frequency of current used depends on the object size,material type, coupling (between the work coil and the object to beheated) and the penetration depth. An important feature of the inductionheating process is that the heat is generated inside the object itself,instead of by an external heat source via heat conduction. Therefore,objects can be heated very rapidly. In addition there need not be anyexternal contact.

Therefore the interior cooking surface of the cooking plate as disclosedand claimed herein can be heated by induction heating. Induction cookingis quite efficient, which means it puts less waste heat into thesurrounding assembly. Induction heating can be quickly turned on andoff, and is easily controlled for heating level. Induction cookingprovides faster heating, improved thermal efficiency, and moreconsistent heating than cooking by thermal conduction, with more precisecontrol over the heat provided. Therefore, the heat applied by theinterior cooking surface to the product can be more preciselycontrolled.

As indicated, the narrow thickness between the upper and lower platescould result in an increased pressure, which for one implementation iscounteracted by the reduced pressure under which the product is beingpumped through the interior channel, and the non-stick, low-resistancesurface (low-friction) of the upper and lower surfaces of the interiorchannel. However, for some thicknesses, the reduced pressure and thelow-friction surface isn't sufficient to counteract the increasedpressure. However, for one implementation as illustrated in FIGS. 12Athrough 12H, the increased pressure is addressed by an upper and lowerconveyor belt that convey through the extrusion interior channelextending between the plates along the upper and lower cooking platesrespectively. The upper and lower conveyors convey in the direction ofthe flow of the extrusion to thereby assist the flow of extrusion,thereby addressing the increased pressure and potential backup of theextrusion flow. The speed of the upper and lower conveyors are variableto adapt to the pressure of the influx of extrudate, the internalchannel pressure, and the consistency of the product.

Also, there is a non-stick coating on the surface of the upper and lowerbelts that contact the product. The belts are constructed of a materialsuch that the heat transfer coefficient is sufficient to adequatelytransfer heat from the upper and lower cooking plates to the productbeing extruded.

The cooking surface of the belts that contacts the product as the beltstraverse through the channel in the direction of flow of the interiorchannel of the cooking plate through which the product travels isconstructed of a material that provides a non-stick low-resistance(low-friction) surface so that the product as it is extruded through thecooking plate is conveyed through without substantially impacting theflow and preventing the conveyors from causing the product to backup,thereby assisting the product to not form a continuous mass or sheet.Due to the non-stick surfaces of the conveyor belt, the denaturing ofthe product by heating, the height of the narrow interior channel, thespeed of the belts, and gravity, the product tends to remain on andcling to the lower belt of the lower conveyor and not cling to the upperbelt of the upper conveyor.

Referring to FIG. 12A through 12I, a cooking plate assembly 1200 isillustrated including a cooking plate 1202 mounted on a frame 1204. Theassembly 1200 includes an upper conveyor having an upper entry endreturn run 1206 and an upper exit end return run 1212. The assembly 1200further includes a lower conveyor having a lower entry end return run1207 and a lower exit end return run 1214. The upper conveyor top runtravels over the conveyor pulley rollers 1240, 1238, 1234 and 1232. Theupper entry end return run pulleys 1228 and 1230 are covered by aprotection shield 1208. The upper exit end return run pulleys 1242 and1243 are covered by an upper exit end protection shield. The bottom runof the upper conveyor, extends through the interior channel along theupper plates interior surface. The outward facing surface of the upperbelt 1250 contacts the product as the product travels through theinterior channel extending between the cooking plates. The inward facingsurface of the upper belt 1251 extends immediately adjacent the upperplates interior surface. Heat is transferred from the upper plate to theupper belt and the upper belt's outer surface 1250 is heated andcontacts the product being extruded through the interior channel. Thelower conveyor bottom run travels over the conveyor pulley rollers 1218,1220, 1222 and 1224. The lower entry end return run pulleys 1216 and1218 are covered by a protection shield 12010. The lower exit end returnrun pulleys 1225 and 1226 are covered by an upper exit end protectionshield. The top run of the lower conveyor, extends through the interiorchannel along the lower plates interior surface. The outward facingsurface of the upper belt 1252 contacts the product as the producttravels through the channel. The inward facing surface of the upper belt1253 extends immediately adjacent the lower plates interior surface.Heat is transferred from the lower plate to the lower belt and the lowerbelt's outer surface is heated and contacts the product being extrudedthrough the interior channel. The outer surfaces of the upper and lowerbelts, 1250 and 1252 respectively, are non-stick material, which is oneof metal, Teflon or other comparable non-stick material. For oneimplementation, scrapper rollers 1236 and 1237 are utilized to removeany remaining product from the outer surface of the belt aftertraversing through the interior channel.

FIG. 12I provides a further illustration of the cooking plate assembly1200, where the lower exit end protection shield structure is removed tothereby reveal the lower conveyor belt return run at the exit end. Theview in FIG. 12I reveals a scrapper assembly that is mounted between theleft and right lower protection shields having a leading edge 1262positioned to scrap the product from the belt for the product thatremains clinging to the belt. The exiting product is collected forfurther processing. On the product entry end, product is extrudedthrough an extrusion line 1268 and through a compression nozzle 1266 andfurther through a sheeter nozzle 1270. The sheeter nozzle has an exitopening that is a long narrow opening that extends horizontally and issubstantially parallel to the belt of the lower conveyor. Thinnon-continuous sheeted product flows out of the exit opening of thesheeter nozzle and onto the belt of the lower conveyor and in thedirection as indicated by directional arrow 1264, which is conveyedthrough the channel between the upper and lower cooking plates.

For one implementation of the technology, an extrusion horn includes anupper cooking plate having an upper interior cooking surface and a lowercooking plate having a lower interior cooking surface, where the upperinterior cooking surface and the lower interior cooking surface faceeach other, and where said upper interior cooking surface is proximatelyspace apart from the lower interior cooking surface with a spacing,where the spacing is defined by a spacer gasket extending lengthwisealong the upper and lower cooking plates and said spacer gasketpositioned between the upper interior cooking surface and the lowerinterior cooking surface thereby forming a lengthwise interior extrusionchannel having an entry opening and an exit opening. One implementationfurther includes a conveyor having an endless conveyor belt where one ofan upper run of the endless conveyor belt and a lower run of the endlessconveyor belt extends lengthwise and conveys through the lengthwiseinterior extrusion channel.

For one implementation the conveyor is an upper conveyor and where theendless conveyor belt is an upper endless conveyor belt, and where alower run of the upper endless conveyor belt extends lengthwise andconveys immediately adjacent the upper interior cooking surface andthrough the lengthwise interior extrusion channel. For yet anotherimplementation, the conveyor is a lower conveyor and where the endlessconveyor belt is a lower endless conveyor belt, and where an upper runof the lower endless conveyor belt extends lengthwise and conveysimmediately adjacent the lower interior cooking surface and through thelengthwise interior extrusion channel. For one implementation, theconveyor is an upper conveyor having an upper endless conveyor belt,where a lower run of the upper endless conveyor belt extends lengthwiseand conveys immediately adjacent the upper interior cooking surface andthrough the lengthwise interior extrusion channel.

For one implementation of the extrusion horn, a power source is coupledto the upper and lower cooking plates through an interface that providesenergy that raises the temperature of the cooking plates and the upperand lower interior cooking surfaces. For one implementation, theinterface includes, an upper induction coil positioned proximate theupper cooking plate and on an opposing side of the upper cooking plateopposite the upper interior cooking surface, and a lower induction coilpositioned proximate the lower cooking plate and on an opposing side ofthe lower cooking plate opposite the lower interior cooking surface.

Referring to FIG. 1A, an extrusion horn apparatus 100 is illustrated.One implementation of the technology is a device including a conduit 101communicably extending between an exit portal 106 and an entry portal108. In one implementation, the conduit 101 can be communicable or influid communication between the exit portal 106 and entry portal 108 byusing an internal lengthwise channel (not shown in FIG. 1) extendingbetween and communicable with the entry portal 108 and the exit portal106. In one implementation of the technology, the conduit 100 can have afeeder conduit portion 102 communicably extending from the exit portal106 and communicably contacting, in-line, and end-to-end a taperedportion 104 communicably extending to the entry portal. The taperedportion 104 is of a similar configuration to that of the pre-compressionnozzle 502 as illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6. The tapered portion 104 ofthe conduit has an outwardly tapered end 110 and an inwardly tapered end112 as it extend from proximate the entry and toward the exit end, wherethe outwardly tapered end 110 is disposed at an upstream position andabutted with respect to the inwardly tapered end 112 communicablyextending toward the exit portal. The exit portal 106 is a slitted exitopening in an exit end 107 of the feeder conduit portion 102. The feederconduit portion can be an elongated tubular structure 114. The entryportal 108 can be a slitted entry opening—See FIG. 4B.

Referring to FIG. 1B, the extrusion horn apparatus 100 having a taperedportion 104 can have an outwardly tapered end 110. The inwardly taperedend 112 of the tapered portion 104 of the conduit can include an upperoutwardly tapered plate 122 and a lower outwardly tapered plate 304 (SeeFIG. 3) each extending downstream and tapered outwardly one with respectto the other as they extend downstream and where a distance between theupper inwardly tapered plate 122 and the lower inwardly tapered plate304 increases as the upper inwardly tapered plate and lower inwardlytapered plate extend downstream toward the exit portal 106. Also,referring to FIG. 2 a distance between outer edges, 204 and 206 of theupper inwardly tapered plate and the lower inwardly tapered plate canincrease as the upper inwardly tapered plate and the lower inwardlytapered plate extend downstream.

Referring again to FIG. 1B, the outwardly tapered end 110 of the taperedportion 104 of the conduit can include a left-side outwardly taperedplate 406 (See FIG. 4B) and a right-side outwardly tapered plate 126each extending downstream and tapered outwardly one with respect to theother as they extend downstream and where a distance between theleft-side outwardly tapered plate 126 and the right-side outwardlytapered plate 126 increases as the left-side outwardly tapered plate andthe right-side outwardly tapered plate extend downstream, and where adistance between outer edges 204 and 206 of the left-side inwardlytapered plate and the right-side inwardly tapered plate increases as theleft-side inwardly tapered plate and the right-side inwardly taperedplate extend downstream.

The extrusion horn apparatus 100 as disclosed and claimed, where theinwardly tapered end 112 of the tapered portion of the conduit includesan upper inwardly tapered plate 120 and a lower inwardly tapered plate302 each extending downstream and tapered inwardly one with respect tothe other where a distance between the upper inwardly tapered plate 120and the lower inwardly tapered plate 302 decreases as the upper inwardlytapered plate and lower inwardly tapered plate extend downstream, andwhere a distance between outer edges of the upper inwardly tapered plateand the lower inwardly tapered plate decreases as the upper inwardlytapered plate and the lower inwardly tapered plate extend downstream.The inwardly tapered end 112 of the tapered portion of the conduitincludes a left-side inwardly tapered plate 404 (See FIG. 4A) and aright-side inwardly tapered plate 124 each extending downstream andtapered inwardly one with respect to the other where a distance betweenthe left-side inwardly tapered plate 404 and the right-side inwardlytapered plate 124 decreases as the left-side inwardly tapered plate andthe right-side inwardly tapered plate extend downstream, and where adistance between outer edges of the left-side inwardly tapered plate andthe right-side inwardly tapered plate decreases as the left-sideinwardly tapered plate and the right-side inwardly tapered plate extenddownstream.

For one implementation of the technology, the tapered portion 104 canalso act as a cooking portion that sears the extrudate as it passesthrough. The tapered portion 104 can also be configured as a heatingelement that when powered can sear the extrudate as it passes through.The tapered geometry of horn makes the meat extrudate flow out uniformlywithout blowouts by providing back pressure. The extrudate can be pushedthrough to the tapered end acting as a heat transfer device having upperplate and lower plate and side plates thereby searing meat on top andbottom and all sides of the extrudate. The partially cook outside of theextrudate, for example a meat product, helps to maintain the productintact. Any marinate or seasoning applied to the product also getscooked and seared to the product. Partial cooking on the fly is providedduring extrusion.

Referring to FIGS. 4C and 4D, for one implementation the upper outwardlytapered plate 122 and the lower outwardly tapered plate 304 areillustrated. The upper and lower outwardly tapered plates 122 and 304define an internal lengthwise channel through which extrudate flows.FIG. 4F illustrates a bottom view of the upper outwardly tapered plate,which reveals the upper portion 408 of the internal lengthwise channel.A complimentary lower portion of the internal lengthwise channel iscomparably defined by the lower outwardly tapered plate 304. FIGS. 4Eand 4G are illustrative of the taper of the internal lengthwise channel,as the upper portion of the entry end into the channel, as seen in FIG.4E, has a greater height than the height of the upper portion of theexit end as seen in FIG. 4G.

The portion 110 of the internal lengthwise channel extending through theoutwardly tapered end progressively increases in height (“H”) such thatthis portion of the internal lengthwise channel is outwardly tapered.Whereas, for one implementation, the portion 112 of the lengthwisechannel extending through the inwardly tapered end progressivelydecreases in height thereby causing back pressure to provide for uniformflow of the extrudate. For example, the internal lengthwise channel candecrease in height in the range of about approximately 0.125 inches fromthe entry end to the exit end. However, the slope of the taper can beadjusted depending on the pressure and the consistency of the extrudate.For example, the decrease in height from entry end to the exit end canbe a decrease in height in a range from approximately 0.125 inches and0.2 inches. Again, this can vary depending on the desired back pressureand the consistency of the extrudate. In one implementation of thetechnology as disclosed the width (“W”) of the internal lengthwisechannel is uniform. The width (“W”) of the channel can be designed basedon the consistency and other characteristics of the extrudate. For yetanother implementation the width of the channel is tapered consistentwith the tapers of opposing side walls 126 and 406 and opposing sidewalls 124 and 404. For example for some extrudate, the width of thechannel can be in the range of 1-20 inches or possibly wider for othertypes of extrudates. The height (“H”) of the channel can be in the rangeof about approximately 0.125-2 inches.

Referring to FIG. 4H, a sectional view of the upper outwardly taperedplate, illustrates the zones 410 of the heat exchange jacket, whichprovide the energy for searing the extrudate. One implementation of theheat exchange jacket can utilized pressurized steam injected into thezones thereby transferring heat to the inner wall of the internallengthwise channel that is sufficient to sear the extrudate. The heatexchange can also be powered by heated fluids, electrically poweredheating elements and the like. The inner wall of the internal lengthwisechannel that contacts the extrudate and sears the extrudate whenenergized (See FIG. 4F, which illustrates the upper portion 408 of theinternal lengthwise channel and reveals the inner wall) can have anon-stick surface finish and/or a non-stick coating applied to the innerwall. For example, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), often sold under thebrand name “TEFLON” ®, can be applied or a ceramic coating, siliconecoating or an enameled cast iron coating. Also, a highly polishedstainless steel, anodized aluminum or a seasoned cast iron surface canbe utilized. Also, non-stick fabrics that are replaceable can beutilized over the inner wall cooking surface such as for example, PTFEcoated fabrics can be utilized. A non-stick fabric can be periodicallyreplaced as a wear item.

The various implementations provided herein illustrate and extrusionhorn, which provides sufficient back pressure on the extrudate and searsthe extrudate as it passes through. A user of the present technology maychoose any of the above extrusion horn implementations, or an equivalentthereof, depending upon the desired application. In this regard, it isrecognized that various forms of the subject extrusion horn could beutilized without departing from the scope of the present invention. Thetechnology as disclosed and claimed herein can be utilized for variousprotein based extrudate products, such as chicken breasts or tenders, orany animal or plant based protein items. The product can also be aground meat product or meat batter or other food extrudate that can beformed into a final product having a particular shape or form factorafter being extruded through the tapered horn device and subsequentlyplaced in a bag that is vacuum sealed or other casing.

As is evident from the foregoing description, certain aspects of thepresent implementation are not limited by the particular details of theexamples illustrated herein, and it is therefore contemplated that othermodifications and applications, or equivalents thereof, will occur tothose skilled in the art. It is accordingly intended that the claimsshall cover all such modifications and applications that do not departfrom the spirit and scope of the present implementation. Accordingly,the specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrativerather than a restrictive sense. The upper and lower plates aregradually inwardly sloped one with respect to the other. The upper andlower plates are laterally sealed with spacer gaskets, which extendlengthwise along the outer lateral edges of the upper and lower cookingplates such that spacer gaskets laterally seal the upper and lowerplates as the upper plate and the lower plate slope inwardly one withrespect to the other, thereby having a graduated narrowing in thicknessor height (narrowing spacing between the upper and the lower plate) fromthe entry portal to the exit portal.

Certain systems, apparatus, applications or processes are describedherein and these systems, apparatus and application can include a numberof modules. A module may be a unit of distinct functionality that may bepresented in software, hardware, or combinations thereof that controlthe extrudate process such as controlling the pressure input, cookingtemperature and other parameter. When the functionality of a module isperformed in any part through software, the module includes acomputer-readable medium. The modules may be regarded as beingcommunicatively coupled. The inventive subject matter may be representedin a variety of different implementations of which there are manypossible permutations. For example, the flow of extrudate and the rateof flow can be programmed and controlled by a computing device. Theturning on and off of the heater element function of the tapered end andthe heating element temperature can be controlled by a computing device.

The methods described herein do not have to be executed in the orderdescribed, or in any particular order. Moreover, various activitiesdescribed with respect to the methods identified herein can be executedin serial or parallel fashion. In the foregoing Detailed Description, itcan be seen that various features are grouped together in a singleembodiment for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This methodof disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention thatthe claimed embodiments require more features than are expressly recitedin each claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventivesubject matter may lie in less than all features of a single disclosedembodiment. Thus, the following claims are hereby incorporated into theDetailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as a separateembodiment.

In an example embodiment, the machine operates as a standalone device ormay be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networkeddeployment, the machine may operate in the capacity of a server or aclient machine in server-client network environment, or as a peermachine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. Themachine may be a server computer, a client computer, a personal computer(PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a Personal Digital Assistant(PDA), a cellular telephone, a web appliance, a network router, switchor bridge, or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions(sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by thatmachine or computing device. Further, while only a single machine isillustrated, the term “machine” shall also be taken to include anycollection of machines that individually or jointly execute a set (ormultiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of themethodologies discussed herein. In the case of the present technology,the extrusion horn can be a machine that is operated on an automatednetwork. The flow of the extrudate can be controlled on the network, thepartial cooking and other functionality.

If a computer system is utilized to control the extrusion hornoperation, the computer system can include a processor (e.g., a centralprocessing unit (CPU) a graphics processing unit (GPU) or both), a mainmemory and a static memory, which communicate with each other via a bus.The computer system may further include a video/graphical display unit(e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a cathode ray tube (CRT)). Thecomputer system and any client computing devices can also include analphanumeric input device (e.g., a keyboard), a cursor control device(e.g., a mouse), a drive unit, a signal generation device (e.g., aspeaker) and a network interface device.

Other aspects, objects and advantages of the present invention can beobtained from a study of the drawings, the disclosure and the appendedclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. An extrusion horn comprising: an upper cookingplate having an upper interior cooking surface and a lower cooking platehaving a lower interior cooking surface, where the upper interiorcooking surface and the lower interior cooking surface face each other,and where said upper interior cooking surface is proximately space apartfrom the lower interior cooking surface with a spacing, where thespacing is defined by a spacer extending lengthwise along the upper andlower cooking plates and said spacer positioned between the upperinterior cooking surface and the lower interior cooking surface therebyforming a lengthwise interior extrusion channel having an entry openingand an exit opening; and a conveyor having an endless conveyor beltwhere one of an upper run of the endless conveyor belt and a lower runof the endless conveyor belt extends lengthwise through the interiorextrusion channel and conveys through the lengthwise interior extrusionchannel.
 2. The extrusion horn as recited in claim 1, where the conveyoris an upper conveyor and where the endless conveyor belt is an upperendless conveyor belt, and where a lower run of the upper endlessconveyor belt extends lengthwise and conveys immediately adjacent theupper interior cooking surface and through the lengthwise interiorextrusion channel.
 3. The extrusion horn as recited in claim 1, wherethe conveyor is a lower conveyor and where the endless conveyor belt isa lower endless conveyor belt, and where an upper run of the lowerendless conveyor belt extends lengthwise and conveys immediatelyadjacent the lower interior cooking surface and through the lengthwiseinterior extrusion channel.
 4. The extrusion horn as recited in claim 3,comprising: an upper conveyor having an upper endless conveyor belt; alower run of the upper endless conveyor belt extends lengthwise andconveys immediately adjacent the upper interior cooking surface andthrough the lengthwise interior extrusion channel.
 5. The extrusion hornas recited in claim 4, comprising: a power source coupled to the upperand lower cooking plates through an interface that provides energy thatraises the temperature of the cooking plates and the upper and lowerinterior cooking surfaces.
 6. The extrusion horn as recited in claim 5,where the interface comprises, an upper induction coil positionedproximate the upper cooking plate and on an opposing side of the uppercooking plate opposite the upper interior cooking surface, and a lowerinduction coil positioned proximate the lower cooking plate and on anopposing side of the lower cooking plate opposite the lower interiorcooking surface.
 7. The extrusion horn as recited in claim 5,comprising: an entry nozzle having a nozzle channel extending from anozzle entry opening to a nozzle exit opening where said nozzle channelis in fluid communication with the lengthwise interior extrusion channeldefined by the upper interior cooking surface, the lower interiorcooking surface and a wedge shaped spacer extending between the upperand lower cooking plates.
 8. The extrusion horn as recited in claim 7,where said lengthwise interior extrusion channel has a cross sectionthat gradually gets smaller as said lengthwise interior extrusionchannel extends from a proximate end of the lengthwise interiorextrusion channel to a distal end of the lengthwise interior extrusionchannel.
 9. The extrusion horn as recited in claim 8, where saidlengthwise interior extrusion channel extends between a horn entryopening at the proximate end and a horn exit opening at the distal end.10. The extrusion horn as recited in claim 9, where said horn exitopening is sufficient small to induce a product being extruded toseparate into small pieces.
 11. The extrusion horn as recited in claim10, where the upper cooking plate and the lower cooking plate graduallygets wider as the upper and lower cooking plates extend from theproximate end to the distal end and thereby the lengthwise interiorextrusion channel gradually gets wider as the lengthwise interiorextrusion channel extends from the proximate end to the distal end. 12.The extrusion horn as recited in claim 11, where the interfacecomprises, an upper induction coil positioned proximate the uppercooking plate and on an opposing side of the upper cooking plateopposite the upper interior cooking surface, and a lower induction coilpositioned proximate the lower cooking plate and on an opposing side ofthe lower cooking plate opposite the lower interior cooking surface. 13.A method of extruding extrudate through an extrusion horn comprising:pumping a product through an interior channel of a cooking plateassembly where said interior channel is extending between an upper andlower interior cooking surface of an upper and lower cooking plate,which form the upper and lower interior side wall of the interiorchannel, where a spacer is extending lengthwise along the upper andlower cooking plates and said spacer positioned between the upper andlower interior cooking surfaces; and conveying a conveyor having anendless conveyor belt where one of an upper run of the endless conveyorbelt and a lower run of the endless conveyor belt extends lengthwise andconveys through the lengthwise interior extrusion channel.
 14. Themethod of extruding as recited in claim 13, where the conveyor is anupper conveyor and where the endless conveyor belt is an upper endlessconveyor belt, and where a lower run of the upper endless conveyor beltextends lengthwise and conveys immediately adjacent the upper interiorcooking surface and through the lengthwise interior extrusion channel.15. The method of extruding as recited in claim 14, where the conveyoris a lower conveyor and where the endless conveyor belt is a lowerendless conveyor belt, and where an upper run of the lower endlessconveyor belt extends lengthwise and conveying immediately adjacent thelower interior cooking surface and through the lengthwise interiorextrusion channel.
 16. The method of extruding as recited in claim 15,comprising: conveying an upper conveyor having an upper endless conveyorbelt, where a lower run of the upper endless conveyor belt extendslengthwise and conveying immediately adjacent the upper interior cookingsurface and through the lengthwise interior extrusion channel.
 17. Themethod of extruding as recited in claim 16, comprising: providing energyto the upper and lower cooking plates thereby raising the temperature ofthe upper and lower interior cooking surfaces using a power source; andextruding the product through an exit portal of the interior channel,where a distance between the upper and lower cooking surfaces graduallygets smaller as the interior channel extends toward the exit portalhaving a cross section whose width is more than the cross sectionheight.
 18. The method of extruding as recited in claim 17, comprising:powering an upper and lower induction coil disposed proximate the upperand lower cooking plates respectively with a power source, therebyinducing eddy currents in the upper and lower cooking plates therebycausing a temperature of the upper and lower cooking surface to increaseto a desired cooking temperature.
 19. The method of extruding extrudateas recited in claim 17, comprising: pumping the product through an entrynozzle having a nozzle channel extending from a nozzle entry opening toa nozzle exit opening where said nozzle channel is in fluidcommunication with the interior channel defined by the upper interiorcooking surface, the lower interior cooking surface and a wedge shapedspacer extends between the upper and lower cooking plates.
 20. Themethod of extruding extrudate as recited in claim 19, comprising:pumping the product through the interior channel that gradually getswider as the interior channel extends toward an exit portal.